Republican lawmaker introduces anti-trans bathroom bill in Virginia

Virginia lawmaker Robert G. Marshall has filed to bill to make it harder for trans people to use bathrooms in schools, rest stops, and government buildings. House Bill 1612, also called the Physical Privacy Bill, was pre-filed on Jan. 3 and defines sex as the “physical condition of being male or female as shown on an individual’s original birth certificate.” It goes on to read:

The government entity that owns, leases, or otherwise controls a government building shall ensure that all restrooms and changing facilities located in such building provide physical privacy from members of the opposite sex…an individual shall not enter a restroom, changing facility, or private area located in a government building unless such individual is a member of the sex designated to use such restroom, changing facility, or private area.

The principal of a public school attended by a child shall notify the child’s parent, guardian, legal custodian, or other person having control or charge of a child within 24 hours of any request by a child to be recognized or treated as the opposite sex, to use a name or pronouns inconsistent with the child’s sex, or to use a restroom or changing facility designated for the opposite sex.

This means that children who want to use different names or pronouns, especially those who may identify as trans or non-binary, may be outed to their parents in the state of Virginia if the bill passes.